Duty
by Ravenrei
Summary: It is our duty to serve, our duty to live, our duty to die...


Well, this is my first attempt at a multi-part fanfic. I am a bit of a romantic when I write, but not always. (As if you didn't get a clue with 'The Predator and the Prey.') I'm trying to keep that element out of this, but you never know. Sometimes a story just goes off and writes itself with weird things in it that you we're expecting. *Sighs* Ah well, enjoy!

*Insert Standard Disclaimer*

Duty

A Slayers Fanfic by Raven Reimiss

Part 1: Scary! Premonitions of the Future?

"…Buried in the flow of time…

In thy great name, I pledge myself to darkness.

May the fools who stand before us be destroyed…

By the power you and I possess…

DRAGU---"

Lina sat up in her bed suddenly, her breathing coming in sharp gasps. She was sweating profusely, and the sheets were tangled around her legs. A nightmare?

The dream, details already fleeing from the sorceress's mind, had been quite vivid. A battle. The fiery genius sorceress Lina Inverse, the former Swordsmen of Light, Gourry Gabriev, the chimera and great shamanist, Zelgadis Graywords, the second Crown Princess of Seyruun, Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun, and the Sairaag shrine maiden, Sylphiel Nels Raada, all up against some unknown enemy. Perhaps Lina knew during the dream, but it was gone now. 

All the others were down and out. Amelia taken down first when her Balus Wall failed. Gourry fell soon after; he had been standing nearby, and the adversary's Blast Bomb had quite a wide range. The enemy struck out at Zel next, almost running him completely through his chest, but with what? What could that guy have had that would penetrate Zel's stone skin? It didn't matter though, the damage was done, and the remaining shaman was down for the count. Sylphiel ran to his side the second the bad guy phased away… phased? Mazoku? Lina defended them as Sylphiel performed Resurrection. 

One thing Lina knew for certain, this guy was tough. She cast all sorts of wide range spells---scores of Flare Arrows, Flare Bits. She even cast a Dynast Breath when he started to close in. Then, weapon in hand, he broke through her defence. Lina noticed too late. She was just about to be struck with whatever that thing was that had hurt Zel when she heard the last of Sylphiel's chaos words. The sorceress ducked as her shrine maiden friend blasted him with a weak Dragu Slave. Although Sylph specialised in Ruby Eye's spell, the Resurrection had weakened her dramatically, and she collapsed as the last of her energy was put into her casting. 

Seeing that the enemy was not yet beat, Lina drew her sword. She had learned somewhere along the way that she had better control over the Laguna Blade if she channelled it through an enchanted object. Her short-sword had slight enchantments on it, so it worked quite nicely. She chanted the words under her breath for the boost spell to her talismans as their adversary phased back in. Yes, now Lina was sure it had phased in. She still couldn't see his face, though. It was as if he was enshrouded in shadow, giving little away as to his true form. The shadows seemed to swirl around him. She couldn't focus on that now; she had a spell to cast! Raising the sword, she began the chant…"Lord of the dreams that terrify…"

Zelgadis had almost fully recovered from his wounds, and stood next to Lina, powering up a big ass spell. It looked sorta like a Ra Tilt, but Lina didn't think that's what it was on reflection. For some reason, the sound had left her memory of the dream silent. Weird.

Zel released his spell, but it hit off the man's shield, completely ineffective. A gloved hand came out from the darkness, power glowing around it. The ball of energy flew out towards the chimera, striking him down in one shot. The cheap bastard hit him in exactly the same spot he struck the first time.

Laguna Blade spell complete, Lina jumped towards the swirling-shadow-covered man, thrusting the sword of cold and darkness into him. The sound returned, and allowed her to hear his scream. Her ears also picked up Zel's screams, but she couldn't tell what he was saying over the crackling of her spell. 

Suddenly, the figure laughed. She recognised the laugh, but she didn't know whose voice it was. Still trying to figure out who the voice belonged to, she wasn't listening to the man until it was too late to get out of range.

"…Buried in the flow of time…

In thy great name, I pledge myself to darkness.

May the fools who stay before us be destroyed…

By the power you and I possess…"

A ball of energy, crimson beyond flowing blood, gathered within the enemy's pale gloved hands. The churning blackness surrounding him began to dissipate as the last lines of the spell were said, but Lina still couldn't place the man. Realising it was too late to get away, she tried one last pull of the Laguna Blade through his body.

"DRAGU---"

"And then I woke up," Lina finished retelling the dream to her friends. All who had been in her dream were with her in her inn room. Xelloss was also there, smiling as always despite the tale.

"Ne, ne, Lina-chan, do you think it was a dream or a vision?" he asked exuberantly. 

*BOINK* 

"Don't say something like that so cheerfully, fruitcake!" the red-head screamed. She caught the smiling Mazoku in a Inverse Death Chokehold ™ and held on tight until his face turned the same colour as his shoulder-length hair. 

"Actually, I think it was a legitimate question, Lina-san," Sylphiel chimed.

"If only a certain annoying priest hadn't said it like he had," came a mutter from Zelgadis. The chimera had only recently rejoined the group after yet another unsuccessful cure quest, and so was currently in one of his majorly angsty 'damn you, Rezo' moods. Xelloss was probably having a feast off all the negative emotions. 

Lina finally calmed down enough to release Xelloss and sat back down on her bed, staring at her hands. "I'm not sure. I don't get visions most of the time, in fact, the last time I had one was when I was ten, and that was about going to an amusement park later in the week. But…this dream was so clear, so vivid…" she trailed off, shaking her head.

"Don't worry, Lina-san," Amelia smiled. She stood on the dresser, being the highest object in the room, and posing proclaimed, "By the burning Star of Justice, I swear to you that we shall find an answer to all of this!" Sweatdrops all around.

"Ano, what were we all *yawn* talking about, minna? I fell asleep."

The fiery sorceress's temper flared yet again.

*BASH*

"Gourry no baka!!! Can't you stay awake for once?!?"

Well, that's the first part, hope to get the others out soon. Ja!

Ravenrei- the cyberpsycho

Okay, it goes against my better judgement to be working on this, but I needed the stress reliever, so here goes part two for ya. Enjoy!

Part 2: Oi! Road to Glory

The next few days passed uneventfully. Well, uneventfully for our group of sorceresses and swordsmen at any rate. Only a few bandit raids, cleaning out of restaurant larders, and general typical behaviour of the gang's members. 

Actually, it had been pretty quiet lately, all things considered. No earthshaking prophecies, no people trying out their latest plans for world domination, no heroic idiots/bounty hunters/assassins out to kill the Enemy of All Who Live. The group simply passed from town to town in its usual fashion, yet devoid of problems. 

"What the hell is wrong?!" Lina shouted accusingly into the sky. "I know you've got something up your sleeve, so just get it over with already!"

"Lina, who are you talking to?"

*Sigh* "No one, Gourry, no one."

"Well, that's not what it looks like…"

"I think Lina-san is talking to herself, Gourry-sama."

"Oh. Okay, Sylphiel!" he smiled to the shrine maiden. Said shrine maiden appropriately blushed, despite the fact that the jellyfish was completely oblivious. 

"How much longer till we're in a town?" Lina asked impatiently. "I need _food."_

"The map shows the next village to be approximately an hour from our current location." Zel replied.

"AN HOUR?!?!?! I'LL **_STARVE TO DEATH IN THAT AMOUNT OF TIME!!!"_**

Zelgadis smirked from behind his mask. It amazed him that she wasn't known as the Queen of Exaggeration, though it didn't really fit in with all the other names she's known as. "It could take a little less time if we Raywinged, but does anyone really want to carry Gourry that far?"

Silence. Gourry sweatdropped.

Xelloss floated above the group, hand shading his closed eyes and 'looking' into the distance. "Well, I see a lake up ahead, perhaps we could go fishing?"

"…Fishing? Fishing! Fish!! FOOD!!!" Lina scrambled off down the road, dragging along Gourry. "We can use your hair as fishing line!"

"Oi, why can't we use your hair?!?"

"Yours is longer!"

"Not by much!"

After a nice big meal of fish (in other words, after they thoroughly ridded the lake of all aquatic life forms) they started their journey once more towards the city of Tromper. Legend told of an ancient temple located there, holding many lost lores and texts on magic. Lina had heard about the city on a trip home to Zefilia a few months ago. It was not her choice. When onee-chan calls you home, you do _not negatively reply. Apparently, the city was located to the north of Lina's hometown in a deep river valley. Everyone had their different reasons for the quest. Zel hoped for a cure, as always. Lina hoped for treasure and new magic. Predictable as always when it came to fortune. Gourry because he always followed Lina, and Sylphiel because she now always followed the swordsman. The magic circles that surround the city of Seyruun had been acting up lately. Although most blamed this on the God Sealing Barrier being broken, it was still a problem that needed to be solved, so Amelia hoped to find a solution in the ancient texts. And why was Xelloss tagging along? Well, that was a secret of course!_

As they marched on for the next few days, Lina started to worry. The dream hadn't flitted away, and she was certain that that meant something. Normally, her dreams were forgotten a few minutes to a few hours after they occurred, unless they were visions. She could still remember this dream in great detail, almost a week after that night. She also realised something else. They would have to stop in Zefilia at some point, and that time was soon coming. At their current pace, they'd probably make it there in the next day or so. The sorceress was *not* pleased. 

Okie-day, part 2 complete! Comments, questions, little pink bunny slippers? Send 'em all! The next part is probably gonna be long, so don't expect it for a couple of days. Ja!

Ravenrei- the cyberpsycho

Okay, the (hopefully) long-awaited part 3!!! I can't really think of anything to say right now, so I'll take this time to introduce you all to my muse, the lovely Yuu-sama! ::Yuu-sama waves her koi no ken (and no, it does not mean sword of love!) in a hello:: I have to behave right now, or Yuu-sama will whap me with her nifty ken, so here you go! 

Part 3: Help! The Price is Too High

Upon entering the land of Zefilia, our intrepid band of…people (heroes would sound nice, but only Amelia would really care) were accosted by the wonderful sights and smells of the annual Grape Festival. As this was the princess's first trip to this kingdom, the justice paladin insisted on attending the three-day event. But first, the natural needs had to be met.

"Gohan, lu, lu, lu!"

"Gohan, la, la, la!"

Lina and Gourry's chant was heard throughout the crowded street as they went in search of a place to eat. The others trailed behind somewhat less enthusiastically. 

It seemed that Gourry was hungrier than Lina at the moment, for he was losing Lina fast, going simply by nose towards the closest restaurant as fast as his legs would carry him. If Lina hadn't been so rushed to catch up with her blond companion, she would have noticed where he was heading. Oh well. By the time Zel, Xel, Amelia and Sylphiel had caught up with them, the two had already secured a table, ordered, and were on their first table of assorted foodstuffs. 

A meek waitress came up to the table when she noticed the newcomers. She nearly fainted at having a third rather large order from the princess, but was infinitely pleased with the small orders from the shaman, priest, and priestess. As the waitress left to fill their orders, Sylph looked around the restaurant.

"Oh my, that woman looks quite a bit like you, Xelloss-san."

"Hmm?"

Lina froze in her food fest at Sylphiel's comment. A person in a restaurant, in Zefilia, that looks like Xelloss?!

"Luna!"

This comment came from Lina as a whisper and from Xelloss as quite a loud shout. The Greater Beast's priest waved over said purple-haired waitress as Lina tried to hide underneath the stacks of empty plates.

"Imouto-chan, I see you; you can come out now."

"Hai, nee-chan," Lina replied quietly. She quickly complied to the order, sitting up straight and proper in her chair, head bowed. Sufficed to say, Amelia, Zel, Sylphiel, and Gourry were all stunned at the sudden change in behaviour. Xelloss just stood next to Luna and smiled at her. 

"Hi, Luna-sama!" he beamed.

"Hi Xel-chan!" she returned. 

Sylphiel's assessment of the elder Inverse had been quite accurate. Not only were the facial features similar, they had the same build as well. Luna reminded the others of Xelloss in drag, something which had been scary enough in its own right. Except, of course, Xel never wore a waitress's uniform to their knowledge. The only physical difference they could see between the two other than gender was Luna's hair. It was the same colour and style as the Trickster Priest's, but her bangs were slightly longer, just covering her eyes. 

"Well, imouto-chan, introduce your friends." 

"Hai!" She stood up so she could point to her companions over the stacks of plates. Pointing next to her, she started, "This is Zelgadis Graywords, this is Gourry Gabriev…" She pointed to the blond across from Zel, who waved at Luna with a chicken leg in his hand. Lina felt a sweatdrop coming on. "…obviously you know Xelloss, she is Sylphiel Nels Raada, and this is Princess Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun." Since she had finished, Lina sat back down in her previous position, waiting for whatever came next to happen.

She didn't have to wait long as Zel put down his cup of coffee and addressed the two purple-haired people. "Exactly _how do you two know one another?"_

"Sore wa himitsu desu!" Xelloss cheerfully replied.

"Now Xel-chan, it was a fair enough question…" Luna glared, but you couldn't really see it beneath her bangs.

"Oh, all right. Luna-sama is a friend of the family." 

Jaws dropped onto the table.

"What the hell?!?!?"

"Luna-san!" Amelia leaped onto the table, miraculously dodging all the dishes. Taking one of her poses, she cried out, "This is unjust! You are a Knight of Ceipheed! How can you befriend the Mazoku?" She actually succeeded in making both Luna and Xelloss sweatdrop. 

"Ne, what's so wrong with befriending a mazoku?" Xelloss pouted.

Amelia just ignored him and continued her rant about justice and love and how evil the Mazoku are as the others sweatdropped. Luna just stood there. 

When the princess had finished her speech and had seated herself once again, the waitress/Ceipheed Knight turned back to her sister and said, "Come home after dinner. _All of you."_

"Hai!" came the response from everyone. Satisfied, Luna returned to work.

Lina sighed a breath of relief. Well, at least Nee-chan no longer stood in front of her. But she had to come home?!? 'Oh gods, oh gods, oh gods…'

So, how did you like it, minna-san? ::ducks all the pointy objects being thrown at her:: Well, okay, but I'm still gonna keep writing it! ^_^ Bai-bai!!!

Ravenrei- the cyberpsycho

Well, here's the next part of 'Duty'. I'm really enjoying writing this, even if it's boring all of you to death. Stupid me, I'm letting romance start to slip in. ::sighs:: Well, if you don't like it, then… **; P (my poor excuse for a beda smiley)!!! Um, yeah! Hehehehehe. Right, then. On to the ficcy-poo!!!**

Part 4: Separate! Night-time is Interesting

The setting sun found the group known as the Slayers at a large two-story manor on the outskirts of Zefilia. They had been shown in by Lina's mother, a woman who looked to be in her mid-thirties with fiery red hair in a tight bun and ice blue eyes. She showed the newcomers around the manor as much as she could in the fading daylight, then led them to their rooms for the night. 

Gourry loved his room. A pale shade of cerulean covered the walls. The back wall had a huge window lined with azure curtains. On the right side of the room, an oak dresser with a washbasin and a rectangular mirror stood ready for use. On the left side, a large comfortable-looking bed greeted Gourry's all-too-happy eyes. It had been a while since they had got to sleep at an inn since they spent so much money on meals. He slipped off his armour, sword belt, and boots, and jumped into the awaiting covers. He fell asleep almost instantly.

The same enthusiasm was felt by Amelia on the sight of her own designated bedroom. The walls, originally white, were now lined with lavender wallpaper. The sighting of a canopy bed in front of a silk-curtained window made Ame realise just how weary she really was. She quickly stripped off her adventuring outfit and replaced it with a satin nightgown she kept in her pouch. She folded up the other clothing and placed it within a white oak trunk at the foot of the bed. Then Amelia opened one side of the curtains surrounding the inviting bed and slipped underneath the large rose-coloured quilt. As sleep began to overtake her, she thought about home, her father, the rose garden at Seyruun palace…her sister…her mother…

The princess cried herself to sleep.

Xelloss was shown to his room first, but he didn't bother to stay there. He received a call from his master and left. When he returned, however, he got a very delicious meal. Someone was giving off quite a bit of pain and sorrow. Xelloss reached his senses outward and found the source in the room next to his. When he heard the cries, he recognised the voice as Amelia's. 'Hmm…so the princess still cries about them, eh? I didn't figure she would by now. It has been almost ten years. Ah well, just means more food for me.'_ He smiled his Trickster's smile as he sat down on his bed. Suddenly, he frowned. 'So why doesn't that cheer me more?' he pondered. _

Sylphiel headed straight for bed as soon as she had changed her clothes. Travelling took a lot out of the shrine maiden, especially when it was with Lina-san and her friends. She giggled as she thought of how cute Gourry-sama looked with a chicken leg in his mouth, then closed her eyes and dreamed of her itooshii. 

Lina was not having as good or relaxing time as some of the others were having. As the others took their tour, the sorceress went up to her old bedroom. She found it exactly as she had left it the day she ran away. She thought that was a bit creepy, but it was soon forgotten as she flopped onto her bed. Lina sighed as she brought her stuffed bear, Bri, to her chest. She took in the scent of the bear. It smelled like her mother's perfume, all roses and springtime and happiness. 'Maybe I should try some of that stuff on,' she idly thought. Lina sat up and tugged off her boots, short sword, belt, cape, and shoulder guards. She laid back down and snuggled with the bear underneath her covers. Staring at the ceiling, she thought about their current quest. If this temple place really existed, it would mean a lot of fun and treasure! The sorceress smiled to herself. Loot galore! Probably tons of new magic spells that she could learn. Ah, the joys of a travelling mage's life…

Of course, Lina wasn't the only one thinking about the temple at Tromper. It also had the mind of a certain chimera quite intrigued at the moment. Zelgadis sat on his bed, legs crossed in front of him as he leaned against the headboard. 'It would figure Lina's family would own a bed I could actually use,' he had thought when he came in. The frame of the bed was made out of some metal alloy that Zel couldn't recognise. The mattress was made out of…well, he couldn't tell what that was either, but it was softer than the floor and he didn't sink into it too far down, so he was grateful. Once again, travelling with Lina Inverse. Once again, following a lead on his cure simply because it had a ghost of a chance of working. "Am I really desperate enough to be going on hunches?" he asked himself. Sighing, he continued. "…Yes. I've been stuck this way for almost five years now. Sure, I've got friends now, but that doesn't mean my cure doesn't matter anymore. I'm still a freak, and those who don't know me would rather bring out the pitchforks and torches and ask questions later than have me sit down to tea with them." Zel grumbled. He kicked off his shoes and proceeded to take off his two belts, cape, and shirt, tossing them on a chair next to the bed. He turned his thoughts back to the temple. "Maybe this time won't be like all the others," he mused. "The Tromper temple has a legacy dating as far back as the Clair Bible, and we found out that legend had a usable truth behind it," The chimera's anger flared once more as he hit the mattress with his fist. "Why the hell couldn't they let me see it? All I wanted was a chance to see if it had any answers. Anything that would help. But did the dragons care? No!" Defeatedly, Zel slid down onto his back and pulled the covers up over him, letting his thoughts stew for the night. 

My, that sure had a few twists in it that I wasn't expecting. Ah well, the little oddities of writing, I suppose. ^_^Remember, questions and comments are always welcome!

Ravenrei- the cyberpsycho

Time for the next part! Yea!!!! Um, okay, enough of my ranting. I don't want Yuu-sama to come and hit me again. ::sighs:: Is anyone even bothering to read this? I'm getting very little response, and I want to find out what you guys think. Onegai? Comments, questions, little mallets from hammerspace? Anything?

Part 5: Humph! I Don't Wanna Hear About Family

The sun rose in a blazing inferno the next morning. The Slayers slowly trudged down the ivory spiral staircase in the middle of Inverse Manor towards the kitchen for breakfast. There they found Mrs. Inverse hovering over the stove, lots of pots of various foodstuffs cooking over the fire. 

Luna had already sat down to breakfast, eating a bowl of cereal and some toast. A man sat behind a newspaper next to her. He had purple hair cut in a ragged fashion and ruby eyes. 'Obviously Lina-san's father,' Amelia thought. In fact, the man looked quite a bit like the youngest Inverse daughter. The two were about the same height, build, and their faces had the same features, except that Mr. Inverse sported sideburns. He looked up as he saw the houseguests and his other daughter enter.

"Ohayo, minna-san. You had a nice night, I'm sure?" he inquired.

"Oh, most definitely, Inverse-san!" Sylphiel cheerfully replied. Xelloss just idly nodded his agreement, smiling as always. Lina, Gourry, and Amelia were too busy to respond; the usual breakfast battle had already begun. 

"Gimme, that, Gourry!" 

"No way, Lina, I saw it first!"

"Oi, be fair! Leave some for the others!" Amelia cried as the swordsman and sorceress played tug-o-war over a string of sausage links. 

"Oh my, I hope I have enough food," Mrs. Inverse worried. "I'd better go shopping first thing after all." 

"That sounds like a good idea," Zel told her. "I don't know how most people eat in your household, but right now, you've got at least three bottomless pits to serve food to." He gestured towards the princess and the tug-o-war competitors. 

Food war finally settled, Mr. Inverse addressed his daughters. "Luna-chan, let's go out for our morning spar now," Luna nodded. As he rose from the table along with Luna, he said, "Lina-chan, I expect to see you come out after you're done. Bring any of your friends who wish to come too," he smiled. 

  
"Hai," Lina uttered between bites. Luna and her father then walked out the door. 

Zelgadis looked out the window, watching as Lina's mother went to town. Breakfast had finished peacefully enough, and now everyone but him, Xelloss, and Sylphiel headed out to spar with the other Inverses. He turned back towards the shelves of books that made up the manor's extensive library. The Inverse family was known for its private collection of books, covering almost any subject imaginable. Zel had headed here shortly after breakfast in hopes of finding some information on cure. So far, he had found very little. There were a couple of books on chimeras, but nothing like him. He also discovered a book about the Five Wise Men of the Age, of which his grandfather/great-grandfather Rezo had been. Although he learned a bit more about his family background, the text really didn't say anything about the later years of the Red Priest's life, his search for the Philosopher's Stone, the resurrection of Shabranigdo, or what he did to his only remaining relative. 

Sitting back down in the large armchair positioned near a fireplace, Zel took another book from the pile he had accumulated and started going through it, sipping at a cup of coffee as he read. The chimera stayed that way for the remainder of the day, leaving the library only at mealtimes and when he retired to his bedroom for the night. 

The next couple of days passed by quietly at Inverse Manor, Lina catching up with her family, telling them about her adventures, Gourry using the free time to practice his sword skills with Mr. Inverse, Zel in the library, Ame and Sylphiel spending some time with Mrs. Inverse, and Xelloss causing his normal mayhem and hanging out with Luna. The two hadn't seen each other in a while since Luna didn't come by the island often. 

At the end of the third day, Lina announced that they would move on in the morning. Luna had finally relented and given them some information about the temple, so spirits had risen and excitement filled the air. This made for restlessness among all the travellers. Saying their farewells, the group headed out after another Slayers-sized breakfast. 

And thus, we end part five and the peaceful section of our story. ::grins:: Now the fun begins! ::rushes off to write:: Bai-bai!

Ravenrei-the cyberpsycho

Raven-chan: Hello again, minna-san! Are you bored with this yet? Yes? ::Yuu-sama enters::

Yuu-sama: They said yes?

Raven-chan: Uh-huh ::whimpers; sniffles::

Yuu-sama: ::evil grin:: I'll teach them! ::spreads her big spiffy tenshi wings; brings out the koi no ken:: Koi-yo! ::mercilessly whappies all who dared to not like her lovely Raven-chan's fic:: There. Now what do you say, minna?

Minna-san: Iie! Give us more of your fic, Raven-chan!!!

Raven-chan: Wai!!! Okie-day! Here you go! Part 6 of Duty!

Part 6: Wai! Approaching Tromper

Woods and mountains soon surrounded the group as they journeyed towards Tromper. Lina-tachi settled down for the night in a grove of trees. A waterfall cascaded down nearby, falling into a small pond. Upon sight of this natural beauty, one thought came into their minds. 

"Bath-time!" they chorused. 

After laying out the bedrolls and starting a fire for dinner, they headed over to the pond. Zel knelt by the water's edge and called forth a modified Dug Haut, creating a wall of stone separating the pond in half for privacy while they bathed. The girls hurried over to the right side, quickly stripping off their soiled outfits and pulling out the soap to wash themselves and their clothes. The boys weren't quite so enthusiastic, but nonetheless took off their own clothing and waded into the left side of the refreshing water. 

Once all the cleaning had been done, the girls leaned back on the wall near the waterfall and let themselves soak for a while. 

"The past few days have been pretty great, ne minna-san?" Amelia stated. 

"Yeah," came the consensus from Sylphiel. 

"You know what the bad thing is though? This is the perfect time to be ambushed," Lina replied, effectively killing the relaxing mood. 

Suddenly a scream rang out from the other side of the pond. The girls all jumped up, facing the wall, spells at ready if whatever had attacked decided it wanted to see what lay hidden behind the barrier. They listened for the next few minutes to the sounds of splashing water and grunting before a large flying object landed in their side of the pool with a crash and a great wall of water rising from the surface as the laws of buoyancy went into effect. 

From the other side of the stone wall, the girls heard shouts of "Hentai!" and "Fruitcake Bastard!" The object rose from the water, soaked purple hair clinging to his head and a big smile planted on his face. Xelloss turned towards the girls, waving, and said, "Hello!" Sylphiel, Amelia, and Lina reacted thusly: 

"Eek!" Sylph cried, covering herself. 

Amelia covered her ample cleavage and shouted, "Pervert!"

Lina somehow managed to pull a towel from hammerspace and raised her hands above her head. "Mega Brando!" She exclaimed, bringing her hands down towards the pond's algae-covered floor in the direction of the offending and quite nekkid priest. 

Within milliseconds, Xelloss was in the air, soaring over a mile skywards before beginning his decent. As luck would have it, he landed back in the boys' side of the pond. Not that that made Zel and Gourry any happier than they had been when they flung him out. Taking that as their 'ambush,' the girls settled back down. Amelia cast a small Fireball into the water, making for a quite enjoyable hot tub. 

Of course, _now the ambush started. _

A group of trolls appeared through the woods. True, a bunch of trolls would be no match for Lina-tachi, but it's still rather annoying. 

"Dammit!" Lina screeched. "I have **_no chest! I know that, everyone else I travel with seems to know that, and the fans know that! So why do the idiot writers keep putting me in situations where I'll have to fight without a top on?!?!?" _**

Sweatdrops all around at the statement, including the brighter of the trolls. Since the more sentient ones recovered from Lina's rant quicker, they scrambled to get some sort of clothing on. There was no way in hell they were going to fight in their birthday suits! 

Gourry and Zelgadis shoved on their pants and picked up their swords, starting to cut down the first flank of trolls while the girls finished dressing. Amelia finished first, bedecked in a pull-over shirt and a pair of loose shorts. She came up behind the boys and started flinging out Flare Arrows and Elmekia Lances. Lina let out a string of curses as she tried to pull up her magenta tights around her water-drenched legs. If anyone has tried to put on something form-fitting right after a bath or shower without towelling off all the water on your body, you know exactly how Lina feels right now. She finally gave up and threw on a pair of shorts similar to Amelia's and joined the ruckus. Sylphiel took her time; she knew the only help she could provide in a battle of these proportions was healing the wounds afterwards. 

After getting her own tights on, the shrine maiden looked around at the fight. Lina-tachi were winning, as per usual, although slowly. Her darling Gourry-sama slashed his sword through the enemy, Lina-san coming behind and attacking the troll with a spell. The troll then turned in on itself. Sylph found this quite gross, but it did the job. She turned her view towards Zelgadis and Amelia, who were apparently doing the same thing, but both shamanists were damaging and destroying. 'Those two are almost in unison,' she thought to herself. 'Kowaii…' Noticing that she only saw four people fighting, Sylphiel looked around for Xelloss. "Hmm…where could he have gone?"

The trickster priest didn't show up later that day, or the next for that matter. They decided to move on without him and continue on to Tromper. After all, this wasn't the first time Xel had disappeared without notice, and he always turned up eventually. Usually when they least wanted to see him. They didn't care what he was doing, either. Normally, when he showed back up again and they asked him what happened, they received one of two answers, "Sore wa himitsu desu", or "Mazoku business", so they didn't bother anymore. 

Hundreds of miles away in the Demon Sea, a lone figure reclined on a couch. The air held a taint of smoke, fur, and sweet Zefilian wine. Another puff of smoke drifted to the ceiling as the figure took a drag on her cigarette and exhaled. 

A second figure appeared in the great hall that served as the first's throne room. He came forward to the couch and knelt low on one knee, his head declined in a symbol of respect. The woman eyed her highest servant with an air of appraisal. When she found him favourable, she whisked her unoccupied hand out towards him. Understanding the long practised gesture, the man took her proffered hand in his own lavender-gloved one and gently kissed the dark tanned skin of his master. 

Formalities completed for the latest of an innumerable string of times, the Greater Beast and her priest got down to business. 

The group entered the valley leading to Tromper the next night. The stars shone like almost-microscopic Christmas lights, strung in random patterns across the sky. Well, to any normal person they'd be random; to L-sama, they were chaotic. Everyone set out their bedrolls and headed off to sleep after dining. 

Zel had the second watch that night. He leaned his thin form against a tall rock formation as he sat, sword on the ground at his side. Staring up at the sky, the chimera meditated on his life thus far, waiting for the time to wake Lina up for the next watch. When his elongated ears picked up rustling sounds, Zelgadis darted his eyes back towards the ground, only to find Lina standing right next to him. He looked at her, confusion barely hidden from his features. 'How the hell did she get this close without me hearing her? Some guard *I* am…' he thought bitterly. 

"Copper for your thoughts, Zel?" Lina said, smiling at him as she sat down to his right. 

Zel turned his eyes back to the fire in the middle of the camp, staring at the flames. "What are you doing up already? Your shift doesn't start for another couple of hours, y'know."

"Yeah, but I'm really not all that tired. Besides, how can a person stand to sleep when there's so much to be excited about! We'll make it to the temple tomorrow! Gold, treasures, magic spells, money…" the sorceress went off into a 5-minute rant on all the wonders she hoped to acquire. 

"Assuming the temple is there."

"Aw, Zel, don't be such a sourpuss," Lina admonished him. "You should be happy, dammit! That place could hold your cure!"

"Well, sorry, Lina, but I'm not the optimist you are and you know it. I've had to deal with the ugly truth over the years that legends are sometimes simply that, legends. I won't be able to be happy about this until we find a temple to search, if then."

Lina snorted. A few minutes of silence passed between the two of them as they stared into the flames. "What will make you happy, Zel?"

That wasn't anything Zelgadis was expecting to hear. He blinked at her. "Huh?"

"You're never happy. You'll smile on occasion, sure, but that's normally because you're teasing one of us, or someone cracks a joke, but you're never really happy, are you?" It came out as more of a statement than as a question. "I've only seen you smile, truly smile a few rare times in all the years I've known you. I like seeing that smile, so what do you need to make it come out more?"

That earned her one of what she was looking for as Zel shook his head. He sighed. "You know what I want."

"Yeah, but is that going to make you happy?"

"Of course it will!"

"How?"

"No one will look at me like a freak anymore! I'll get to be a normal human being again!"

"No one who travels with Lina Inverse is a normal human being, Zel. Do you plan on not travelling with us anymore?"

"…no…. You're not saying I can't travel with you anymore if I get my cure, are you?"

"Of course not, Zel!" Lina quickly replied, waving her hands in self-defence. "I'm just saying 'what's normal?', y'know? None of us can hardly be called normal. We're a bunch of sorcerers, swordsmen, and well, Xelloss. Just because you'll be human again, you won't be normal, especially if you've still got your magic. And even if you don't, you're still an _excellent swordsman."_

"Hmph."

"You are! And I don't give out compliments lightly, you know that."

"Yeah, maybe. But, I could lose that, too. I do have demon strength, you know. But I really don't care about that. I just want to get rid of this awful curse so I don't have to go around with this on all the time" He gestured to his hood and facemask "without people staring."

"You don't need it," Lina stated softly.

"Huh?"

'Great, Zel would pick that up. Just should've left it in my head. Lina no baka.' She turned towards him. "I said you don't need the damn mask and hood!" Zelgadis just gave her one of those 'yeah, right' faces. "Really! I mean, none of us care what you look like. Hell, we've never seen you any other way. It's gonna be weird seeing you fully human. Well, maybe not 'weird', but it will take some getting used to…" she trailed off. 

Zel shook his head again, eyes turning towards the fire with a smirk on his face. "I think you've rambled enough for one night, Lina." He looked up at the moon. "It's your watch; I'm going to bed. 'Night."

"'Night, Zel."

The next morning, they packed up and headed out. The gang travelled through the valley, aptly nicknamed Namida no Keikoku, or Valley of Tears. Wild winds whipped across the width of the basin, tossing up clouds of sand as they passed. Zel turned out to be the only one unaffected; his as Lina put it 'damn hood and mask' kept out the offending sand just fine. The others got the full punishment, sand blowing up into their eyes and making them cry. If anyone had been watching, they would've seen a ridiculous sight. One man dressed from head to toe in cream-coloured clothing walked swiftly by. He was followed by a redheaded sorceress, a black-haired shrine maiden, a swordsman with long blond hair, and a raven-haired princess all cowering as they went along, hands to their faces and weeping as gusts of sand-filled wind swirled about them. 

A couple of hours before sunset, the five reached the rock face that would lead up to where the temple lay. The group decided to go into Tromper after searching the temple; the city would serve as a celebration place. About half an hour ago, Gourry had hit a stroke of brilliance and suggested, "Why don't we just fly there or something?", which sparked off Sylphiel's mind to suggest using Raywing bubbles to repel the sand. Thus, for the last thirty minutes of their trip, the group remained sand-free. The winds calmed along the edge of the valley, making it possible to fly up the side instead of taking to the arduous task of climbing. Within a few minutes Lina-tachi were within sight of the temple. 

A once truly gorgeous building, the ancient temple of Tromper now lay in ruins. All but two of the polished marble pillars had fallen, and the roof had apparently caved-in in some of the sections, but as they flew over the structure, no one could see any debris on the floor below. They landed in front of the main entrance and went inside. The sun had already begun its descent for the night, so the consensus was made to wait until morning to explore the ruins. The group settled down for the night quickly after dinner, but only Gourry actually slept much. 

The sun returned, and brought with it a smiling Xelloss, floating in the middle of their circle of sleeping bags. "Étés-vous prete, toute la monde?"

Sylphiel looked up at the priest groggily. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she mechanically began the preparations for breakfast, she responded, "Wha?"

Lina also sat up from her bedroll and squinted at Xel. "What the hell are you saying, Xelloss? Whatever language you're speaking, I don't know it."

"Hmm? Oh, gomen nasai! I was practising a new language before I came over. I guess I'm still thinking in that mode."

"What language, Xelloss-san? I've never heard anything like that before," Ame chimed.

"It's called French, Ame-chan. One of those languages from the other side of the barrier. My mistress has got me learning all sorts of new languages. It really stinks." ^_^

"So, going to do some more work over there, ne?" Zel asked.

"Sore wa himitsu desu, Zel-kun." ^_^

Gourry woke up and sniffed the air. His eyes snapped open. "Food!" he exclaimed, then ran over to gobble down whatever Sylph had ready. 

"Hey, jellyfish brains, leave some for me!" Lina screamed. Amelia and Zel just sighed as they put away their bedrolls while the redhead stalked over to Gourry and bashed him over the head with the first thing she could grab, which just happened to be a skillet Sylphiel was in the process of putting onto the fire. 

After breakfast and a little plan-making, everyone headed out to search around the temple. 

I think this was my longest part yet! Wow. Um, okay, send me some sort of response and tell me what you think about this. Hell, I'll go for flames at this point! If anyone has figured out the title yet, you can tell me that too! I'd be interested to know. Ja ne!

Ravenrei-the cyberpsycho

Yea!!! I finally wrote another part! This may or may not have been a long wait for all you lovely people, but it took me almost a week to write on this story again. ::sighs:: Ah well. Now that summer vacation has started, hopefully the last few parts will be out shortly. Yes! We are nearing the end of the story! But I'm thinking of a sequel…maybe. Don't quote me on it. As always, tell me what you think, and enjoy! ^_^

Part 7: Lucky! Good Finds at Tromper

Sylphiel and Amelia found the library first. Rows upon rows of bookshelves, stuffed to the gills with books of lore. Since they had separated from the group hours ago, they didn't bother to go look for the others; they might've lost the way back after all. The two raven-haired young women started to scan the shelves for interesting titles. Sylph found a book about white magic. She sat down and started reading. When the 'oohs' erupted from her lips, Ame came running.

"What did you find, Sylphiel-san?"

  
The shrine maiden looked up, her eyes showing a great sense of awe. "This book contains offensive white magic spells, Amelia-san."

"Hontou ni?!?"

"Hai!!!"

"WAI!!!!!!!!!" they screamed. 

A little further away into the temple, Gourry searched through an armoury for a new sword. The one they had found for him just wasn't cutting it by his standards. He wanted to find another magical sword so he could protect Lina from monsters and stuff. He heard the girls scream, grabbed a sword, and ran as fast as he could towards their location.

He burst through the door, sword poised and ready to fight. Looking around, he spotted the two hunched over a book at a table.

"Oi, what was all the screaming for?" 

The girls blinked. "Huh?"

//_-\|| "Somebody screamed in here, right?"

"Oh, right, Gourry-sama! Amelia-san and I did because we found a very interesting book."

"Oh, okay!" he exclaimed, giving his goofy grin. 

"How's the search going for your new sword, Gourry-san?"

"Well, I found an armoury, but I can't tell if any of the swords are what I'm looking for. Some look nice, or have a good grip to them, but how am I supposed to tell if they're magical?"

"Wasn't Xelloss-san supposed to be with you?"

"Yeah, but he left. He said he had to go look for something else, or something like that."

"Oh. Well, we'll leave you to your work, then."

"Ganbatte yo!" Ame cheered, Fist of Justice ™ raised high in the air. 

Gourry started back to the armoury. "Thanks!" he waved.

While the others had gone off on a wild goose chase for their items in the temple, Lina and Zel knew exactly where they were headed. Luna told her sister about a book of great power there. A book called The Sage's Pages. Legend tells that the book is a keeper of time, a scribe of the ages. Within its pages lies the story of every person who ever lived, who lives, and who ever will live. In essence, it is much like the Clair Bible, except it has the knowledge of all people, not just the knowledge of a shinzoku, like the Water Dragon King. 

Lina had decided she wanted to know about her future. She knew she couldn't let the others know her intent; more than likely they would try to stop her. Amelia and Sylphiel would object to it at the very least. She had let Zel know, however. The way Lina figured it, this book knows everything about everyone. If there's a cure for Zel, he could find out where and how he could get it. He agreed with her reasoning, so here he was now, walking the corridors with her towards the ancient source of knowledge. 

They rounded the last corner in the maze leading to the Room of the Pages. A large set of double doors stood before them with circular handles. Lina marched up and swung the doors open majestically, her held high and proud, a smug smirk on her face. At least, that's how she planned it. In actuality, she marched up to the doors, all high and mighty, pulled on the rings, and pulled, and pulled…needless to say, she couldn't open the door. 

"A little help here?" she panted.

Zel stood behind her smirking, his arms folded across his chest. "Sure. One thing this form is good for." He took hold of the handles and pulled in exactly the way Lina first tried to do, the difference being that he succeeded.

"…I loosened it up for you," she huffed.

"Right. Let's just go inside."

The sorceress and shaman stepped into the room, their footsteps echoing in the large chamber. They checked for traps, both normal and magical. It struck them odd that they had faced nothing on their journey, so it made sense something bad ass evil would await them. 

Nothing appeared, and no spell flew at them. 

They continued walking to the room's centre, where a golden glowing orb hung, floating silently in the air. Zel had gotten himself quite nervous by now, his stomach knotted and all his senses on edge. If stone skin could sweat, he'd have sweated buckets. Lina felt pretty damn nervous, too, but she was taking the whole situation a lot better than Zelgadis. After all, you deal with one vast source of knowledge, you can handle any other. She grabbed his gloved hand, startling him out of his shock. He looked at her, confusion written across his face. Lina just smiled at him and flicked him a victory sign.

"Go on, Zel, you've waited long enough to find out."

The chimera blinked, then gave her a small smile and nodded. He stepped up to the orb, reverently placing his un-gloved fingers on its surface, then sliding his palms along it as well. As he rested his hands there, the golden light flashed brilliantly, causing both to close their eyes. 

When Zel opened his eyes, the orb was gone. Lina was gone. The temple was gone. All his surroundings had been replaced with grass and trees. He looked around, then put his hand on his head, scratching it in confusion. A thought flitted through his mind. 'My hair is brown…' He stared at the strands in front of his face for a few seconds, making sure that it wasn't a trick of the light. No, indeed his hair was brown, and the clump of it he held in his hand near his scalp was quite soft. He brought his hands out into his line of vision, and took off his gloves, in full awe of the normal *human* flesh that greeted his eyes. Zel sat down to better examine that he was indeed that way all over, smiling like an idiot.

Lina blinked the spots out of her eyes, then focused her attention back on Zelgadis. He still held the orb in his hands, but now seemed like he was in a trance or something. As she moved in front of him, his face went from a total lack of emotion to a largest grin she had ever seen him wear, full of happiness and elation. She smiled herself.

"Good news, I guess." 

"Hello?"

"Hell--ooo!"

"HELLO?!?!?!"

BONK

"ITAI!!!!" Zel finally looked up. His sight was met with a young woman, about his height, with crimpy auburn hair and lavender eyes. Her face was framed by her pointed ears, probably of fae origin, in which she had placed two sets of earrings, one set of dangling golden baubles at the bottom, and a second golden bauble on the ear, connected to a golden cuff higher up by a thin silver chain. She wore a very light blue shift of Greco-Roman design and held a silver staff with an orb of gold on top. 'That must be what hit me…gods that hurt like hell.'

"That's better! Hello, my name is Michi Kindra. I am the guardian of the Sage's Pages. Now, are you quite done staring at yourself?" The woman tilted her head, making the chains jangle against the hanging baubles. 

Zelgadis sweatdropped. "Uh, do you mind if I ask you a question?"

"Not at all!" she grinned. "That's what I'm here for after all. To answer questions about any one who enters here wishes to know about."

"Why am I human?"

Michi blinked. "You mean you don't know where you are?"

"No," he deadpanned. "I was in a temple at the city of Tromper, then a bright flash came from the orb, and when I opened my eyes, I was here, wherever this place is," he flung a hand towards the scenery. 

"Well, physically, you still are in that temple. But your mind has been transferred to the Astral Plane, specifically to my realm in it. As your astral being is human, so you are here."

"Oh."

"Quite. Now, what do you wish to know?"

The scream of 'WAI!!!!!' pierced the air yet again, sending Gourry and Sylphiel back to the library. Sylph went to help Gourry find a sword, knowing the search would go faster with her magical guidance. After all, she had already found a priceless item. Offensive white magic hadn't been seen or used since the end of the Kouma War over a thousand years previous. With this book, the lost branch of the white magic lore could finally be returned to practice. 

They entered the library, and caught sight of Amelia lying on her stomach on the stone floor. She had a book in front her, and she was trying hard not to cry on its ancient pages. That was the amount of joy she felt at her find. The shrine maiden knelt in front of her ecstatic face and turned the book around, seeing a complex pattern of magic circles before her on the book's pages. 

"What are all these circles for?" Sylphiel asked her.

Ame sat up folded her legs, still smiling. "It's the design plan for Seyruun's magic circle wall! I don't know how the plans got here, but I'm glad they did. The originals were lost in a fire over a century ago. With this, we can strengthen our magical defence for the sake of justice!" she finished, pointed her smiley face finger into the air dramatically. 

"I don't get it. It's just a bunch of squiggles and designs all over a piece of paper. How's that supposed to defend a city?" 

The girls facefaulted, which wasn't very pleasant, considering that the floor was granite.

As Lina and Zel exited the chamber, both with smiles on their faces, but for completely different reasons, a figure stepped out from the room's shadows. It moved towards the golden orb and set its gloved fingers gingerly on the surface, as if expecting to be shocked. Its mind entered the Astral Plane, standing before the guardian.

"This is not a place you are welcome in." Michi growled, her lavender eyes flashing.

"Perhaps that's so, but I've come to inform you of something."

  
"And what, pray tell, do you think you need to tell me?"

The figure smiled darkly. "It begins."

Yeesh, I sure am writing longer parts now. ::yawns:: Well, I've stayed up waaay too late now. Don't you just hate it when your creative juices get flowing right before it's time for bed, then you stay up for hours writing/drawing/sculpting/etc. until you run dry? Me too. Guess I'll wait to work on my other stories until the morning. Ja ne!

Ravenrei- the cyberpsycho

Um, you guys are probably going to kill me after the next part of this, but…I really don't blame you, actually. Anyways, onto Duty: Part 8!!!

Part 8: Nani?!?! Revelations of a Mysterious Vision

Lina-tachi regrouped once again outside the temple. Ame and Sylphiel screeched to the other sorcerers about their finds, and Gourry smiled proudly, sporting his new sword in its sheath. This new one worked in much the same manner as the Hikari no Ken, but had different properties. The sword had a false blade for normal battles, but when attacked by Mazoku, demons, or other monsters, this blade could come away, revealing a blade of astral energy. It functioned much like the Shamanist spell Astral Vine, but at a much greater strength. 

The group started to walk off, happy with their finds, when a whirlwind of dust appeared before them. It accumulated into a thick, spinning cloud resembling a tornado, then dissipated, revealing a form cloaked by swirling shadows. 

Unlike most villains, the figure didn't waste time with petty words about how it would defeat them. Instead, it rose into the air, the shadows trailing behind it slightly, revealing patches of a black cape. Lifting a weapon above its assumed head, it began to chant in a low voice, a definite male voice. Amelia stood in front of the others, Gourry close behind her, ready to slash out at it with his sword as she shielded them.

The shadowy figure finished the spell, crying the words "Blast Bomb!" into the air. Balls of light shot forth from the weapon, raining upon Amelia's shield as they exploded, each with the power of a Burst Flare. The defence began to fall, then shattered suddenly. The other magic casters barely had time to defend themselves as the flames swept up on the ground around Amelia and Gourry, taking each almost simultaneously. 

"Kisama!" Zel shouted, preparing a Dynast Breath. His enemy simply chuckled at him darkly, waiting for the assault. The shaman released his spell, the surge of crystals soaring to meet the enemy. He merely floated out of the spell's way, then slammed against Zelgadis, his weapon left protruding through his chest, almost pinning him to the dry ground. The cracks filled and overflowed with Zel's blood as the enemy removed the sharp end and phased away.

Lina stepped up next, tearing her tear-brimmed eyes away from her fallen comrade as she defended the remaining group against attack. Since she didn't know Shamanist spells high enough to damage this guy, she decided to try a high black magic one instead. She muttered the Chaos Words as she approached the shadowed form.

"DOLPH STRASH!" The spear-like shockwave of power slammed into the figure, creating a sonic boom. He took the brunt, but it halted him slightly. Sylphiel ran to the chimera, casting Resurrection as quickly as she could utter the words. 

Seeing that hadn't worked well, the fiery-haired sorceress started to use her lesser fire shamanist spells, hoping to buy the shrine maiden some time. Flare Bits, Flare Arrows, all fell harmlessly against the opponent's shield. 'Damn,' she thought. 'He must've watched us entering the temple and just waited till we came out! I've got to conserve my energy so that I can Laguna Blade his ass out of existence once I have back-up. Can't afford it now.'

She looked back to Sylphiel and Zelgadis, the girl still desperately healing him. 

"DYNAST BREATH!" she called, knowing it wouldn't do much good, but praying to every god she knew of that it would distract him long enough. Lina looked back again, seeing that the Resurrection was almost complete.

Her hopes were crushed as he thrust forward again, catching her off guard. He knocked her to the ground and raised his weapon above his head. 

"Who…who are you?" Lina panted.

The figure paused, as if considering whether to answer her last question. Then the weapon raised fully again, prepared to slash down and kill the Bandit Killer.

Lina flinched, determined not to close her eyes to the deathblow. The silence of the air was interrupted by a small voice, quietly chanting. The breeze blew the words to her "…may the fools who stand before us be destroyed…" Her eyes widened. 'Sylphiel?!" 

The shrine maiden stood, her own eyes narrowed in grief, anger, and concentration. "…by the power you and I possess. DRAGU SLAVE!!!" 

The power of Ruby Eyed Shabranigdo seared through the air, cruising towards the attacker and his prey. Lina barely managed to escape the fiery explosion that engulfed her assailant. She ran towards Sylphiel as the girl fainted from exhaustion, catching her and laying her down on the ground next to a rousing Zel. 

"Come back into the fight as soon as you can, Zel. I can't hold him against us much longer."

"Hai," he grunted.

Lina stood erect again and drew her short-sword. She figured a Dragu Slave wouldn't have finished off this guy, so it was time to bring out the big guns. Softly, she cast the boost spell for her talismans, then put almost all her concentration into building her power for the next spell, only sparing some of her awareness for watching her attacker. Said attacker phased in, black shadows still surrounding his form. Lina glared at him and began the most powerful spell she still allowed herself to use, the highest spell she had that she hadn't sealed away.

"Lord of the dreams that terrify, sword of cold and darkness, free yourself from the heaven's bonds! Become one with my power, one with my body, and let us walk the path of destruction together. Power that can smash even the souls of the gods! LAGUNA BLADE!!!"

The chaotic, black, crackling sword of power came to life between the sorceress's hands as she channelled it into her blade, using its enchantments to give her further control. 

The noise of the spell distracted her from noticing Zelgadis's approach and attack. He yelled out the final words of his spell and released a bright blue ball of light towards the shadowed man. The ball suddenly broke upon impacting the figure's shield, washing the entire area in a bath of brilliant light. 

When their vision had cleared, Lina and Zel turned back to the sight of the impact. The shadows still shrouded the enemy as he chuckled once more. 

"Useless."

A gloved hand reached out from behind the blackness, and a ball of gold crackling with black formed. The ball sped towards Zelgadis, striking him again in the chest. He barely had time to scream out as the energy ripped through him and slammed him into the ground. 

"…Zel?" Lina cried. Her eyes went blank for a second, the shock of her friend and closest companion lying in a pool of blood at her feet overwhelming her. Her senses returned to her as the spell tried to break free. She reined it in and turned her attention back to the floating figure, now descending to the ground. Apparently, he had decided to finish her off with that wicked weapon of his. 

She glared at him, her ruby eyes as cold and hard as the gemstones they resembled. Lina lunged at the man, swiping her blade down over her head and into his body as he sent volts of electricity in Zel's direction. 

The Laguna Blade bit through the shadow barrier, and she could hear his screams as it plunged into his as well. Zelgadis had begun to scream again, urgently yelling to her, but the words were lost in the static sound of her sword of nothingness.

Another noise joined the chorus. The man's laughter. But this time, the deep, menacing voice had been replaced by a gleeful cackle. A familiar cackle. 'I know that laugh,' she thought, her brain trying to wrap itself around the sound and find a face to go with it. She memorised the sound then blotted him out of her hearing as she focused on driving the Blade through him. She came out of her reverie, still confused by the laugh as she heard the man chanting.

"…Buried in the flow of time…

In thy great name, I pledge myself to darkness."

'Oh shit, the bastard is gonna kill me using my signature spell! Gods, why didn't I think about the vision again until it was too late!'

"May the fools who stand before us be destroyed…

By the power you and I possess…"

The shadows dissipated dramatically as she got the Blade further and further in, as well as herself. She could clearly see the weapon now, but before she could place it, the thing vanished, allowing its master to call the blood red energy into his pale-gloved hands. She saw her end at hand, and tried once more to run him through with the Laguna Blade's power.

Her brain finally processed something. 'Hey, if I can see his hands, I should be able to…' she looked up. 'Oh gods.'

Lina froze in her efforts as she stared at his face, full recognition in her eyes and a sinking feeling in her stomach. The man looked down at her, smirking in an evil parody as of his usual grin. The smirk widened into a feral smile as he uttered the last words.

"DRAGU---" was all he managed as her spell finally tore down. He screamed again as the two parted, the ruby energy disappearing with the shadows as the trickster lost a great deal of power with the blow. He clutched at his midsection, trying to hold his physical body together. The mazoku's violet slit pupil eyes opened in a wince, glaring at the sorceress as she did the same, her spell still crackling between the two of them. 

He fell to his knees as Lina approached him, the concentrated sword at his throat. She stared at him, pain, suffering, and betrayal marring her features.

"Why Xelloss?"

He looked at her like she had suddenly sprouted wings. "Why?" he chuckled. He closed his eyes and grinned. "Sore wa himi---"

She pushed the sword closer to his throat. "Finish that phrase and you die right now."

The priest sighed and opened his eyes again. "…duty," he croaked.

Lina pulled the sword away, confused, and let the Laguna Blade run out. "What?"

"It was my duty. Juuou-sama decreed that you had been allowed to grow too powerful, and sent me to kill you all. As it stands, I'll probably be killed for telling you this much, so you may as well do it."

"Was that all you came here for? To kill us?"

"It was the main reason, yes."

"But not the only reason."

He smiled. "Of course not! I always have my own agenda; you've figured that much out."

The sword returned to his throat. "And this little trip's agenda?"

"Lina-san…"

"Tell me!"

"I can't! SHE'LL hear!" he whispered anxiously.

"You're not getting any further from an imminent demise, Xelloss."

"I wanted to see my future, alright?!"

"That's all?"

"Basically. Everything else had to do with that or this."

Lina looked back at her friends. Sylphiel had regained consciousness and crawled over to Gourry and Amelia, trying to heal their wounds. The two still lay unconscious on the ground, burns all over their bodies. Zel didn't appear to be as badly injured as the first time. He had sat up and begun healing himself, keeping an eye on Lina and Xelloss as he did so. She turned back to the mazoku.

"You failed. Go back to your master, and if I ever, EVER see that smiling face of yours again, I'll Giga Slave your ass out of existence, understand?" she growled. He nodded grimly and phased away. Lina sheathed her short sword and walked over to Zelgadis, aiding him with healing his wounds.

"Why did you let him go?" he asked.

"You know how strong Xelloss is. Even in our current conditions, he would've beaten me. It's no use trying until I'm back up to snuff."

Zel shifted so that he could better hold himself upright. "You should be helping Sylphiel, not me."

Lina looked over to the others and saw the shrine maiden huddled over Gourry, sobbing as she cast Recovery over his broken body. She could barely keep the tears back herself as she nodded to Zel and went over to help heal Ame.

For being hit straight on by a Blast Bomb, the young shaman looked a lot better than the swordsman did. Blood came from her mouth and ears, but no pool of the crimson liquid surrounded her. Lina decided to take that as a good sign as she cast Recovery. The burns slowly disappeared and the bleeding stopped, leaving the princess sleeping peacefully. 

The sorceress then moved to help Gourry, and cringed at the sight. The spell had burned completely through his armour in some places, the melted metal fusing with strands of his singed golden hair. The rest of his body was burned severely, and his breath came in shallow gasps as he lied in his own blood. The blood mixed and diluted itself with Sylphiel's tears as her shaking hands continued to cast healing spells over his body. Lina joined in, though she already feared the worst. She'd never seen Gourry this badly injured before. Hell, normally he was the only one who wasn't badly hurt in a fight. His skin knitted back together, but the internal injuries he had suffered were very severe. 

"He's too weak for Recovery," Sylph sobbed. "We have to get him to a healer, Lina-san!"

Lina nodded. "I think I still have enough energy to fly to Tromper. Raywing!" she shouted, launching herself and Gourry into the air, heading in the direction of the city. Sylphiel simply collapsed on the ground and cried. 

Eep. Um, this story has taken on a mind of its own. Yes, I'm most certain of that now. I had to fix it at one point where it tried to have Zelgadis die. ::ducks as various pointy projectiles flying at her from the Zelgadis Lovers:: Gomen! But hey, he survived! Yea! Um, did the title-tie-in seem lame? Please tell me what you think! 

Ravenrei-the cyberpsycho 

Okay, if you didn't hate what I did in the last part, you're really gonna hate me now. ::wards against spells/swords/etc.:: I had stop to clear my own eyes while writing this. It totally depressed me. Ugh. 

Part 9: Kyaa!!!! The Heroes Are Always Supposed to Win

Lina arrived with her precious cargo at the white magic temple ten minutes later. The healers came out and bundled the both of them off for treatment, but Lina protested.

"No…others…outside the city near the old temples…they're worse than me. You have to get them."

The exhausted sorceress watched numbly as the healers worked to save her long time travelling companion. She barely noticed when Zelgadis and Sylphiel came up behind her. They were as tired as she was, and the emotional stress of it all really showed in Sylph, dark circles already forming under her eyes as she wept continually. Amelia slept in a room nearby. Zel put a hand on Lina's shoulder as they watched Gourry through the window. 

"You did your best, you know. We all did."

"Yeah, I know. But if Gourry---"

"Shh. We don't need to think like that yet. Not until we hear from the healers."

"How's Amelia?"

Sylphiel answered. "She'll be alright. She just needs to sleep and regain her strength."

Just then, the healers filed out of the swordsman's room, all of them walking off down the hall save for one. He stood before the trio, and delivered the news. 

"Your friend is a resilient fighter, but this is going to be too much. We couldn't heal all of the internal damage. Our best estimation is that he has about seven or eight hours left. We did manage to get him conscious again, and put a few spells over him to dampen the pain, but that's about all we can do at this point. I'm sorry." Then he walked off with the others.

As soon as the man turned the corner, the tears started to fall down Lina's cheeks. Sylphiel had already dropped to the floor and was crying relentlessly. The chimera held tears in eyes, and let Lina latch onto him for support. 

The shrine maiden sniffled, scrubbing at her eyes, and stood. "I guess I'll go see him now." She proceeded to enter the room, trying her best to put on a cheerful grin for Gourry as he waved at her weakly. 

"Hi."

"Hello, Gourry-sama."

"C'mon, sit down." She did as she was bade. "What's with all the tears, Sylphiel?"

That just made her eyes well up more as she stared at him. "Didn't they tell you?"

Gourry just smiled at her. "Yeah. But shouldn't you save those for after I'm gone? I'm still here; there's no reason to cry yet."

"Oh, Gourry-sama!" she flung herself towards him, catching the swordsman in a tight embrace.

"Ow."

She gasped. "Oh! Gomen nasai!" she mumbled, releasing him slightly. 

"It's alright….Sylphiel?"

"Mmm?"

"Aishiteru."

The sobs racked her body again. "I love you too! When did you figure that out, hmm?"

"Oh, I knew I loved you a long time ago. But I knew the second I told you, you'd want to get married and settle down and stuff. I just wasn't ready for that. Guess I'll never be ready now. But I didn't want to go without telling you that."

"Arigatou gozaimasu." 

"Can you send the others in, one at a time? I'd like to see everyone privately, okay?"

She nodded. "Sure. Anything you want." Sylph walked back to the door and stepped out. 

"Well?" Zel asked.

"He wants to see everyone separately, to say personal goodbyes I guess." 

"I-I'll go first," Lina offered.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, Zel. I'll be okay." 

"Oi, Lina."

"Oi, Gourry," she sniffled. The swordsman grimaced.

"Aw, not you, too!" Lina blinked.

"What the hell do you mean by that, Jellyfish Brains! This could be the last time I see you outside of a big box!" her ranting started to give way. "I'm not ready for that yet."

Gourry smiled. "I know, Lina, I know. Oi," he started, turning to his left and reaching for the chair near the window. He grabbed the item lying on the chair and passed it to Lina. 

"I know you always wanted the Hikari no Ken, but I guess this is the best I can give you now," he joked.

Lina took the astrally-powered sword in her hands, staring at it blankly. A few teardrops fell onto the sheath and she looked back up at him, still smiling that usual smile of his. 

"Gourry, I can't---"

"No, Lina. Take it. Pass it down to your children. That's the way it should be." She nodded. 

"Gods, I'm gonna miss you, Gourry." 

"I know. I'll be waiting for you, but I don't expect to see you too soon, understand?"

She smiled and gave him a victory sign. "Yeah."

"Ano, is Amelia going to be able to come in?"

"I doubt it. She's still resting and recovering."

"Oh," Gourry's eyes dimmed. "Hey, can you write a letter to her from me?"

"That's a good idea! Yeah, I've got some paper in here," she fished around in her cape and found some paper and a piece of graphite. "What do you want it to say?"

Letter finished and a kiss on the cheek from each other, Lina left the room and motioned for Zel to take his turn.

"Oi."

"Hey Zel."  
  


Zelgadis looked around the room, his eloquent speech for once at a loss. "Uh…so, how're you feeling?"

"Not too bad. A bit tired, but nothing I can't handle."

"Mmm," the chimera sagely nodded.

"Zel?"

"Yeah?"

Gourry turned himself so that he faced Zelgadis. He took on a serious tone, starting, "I've got a request to ask of you."

Zel nodded. "Sure, whatever it is, I'll do it."

The swordsman took the shaman's hand and leaned forward, putting emphasis on his words. "I want you to protect Lina now, okay? Obviously I won't be able to do it anymore, and whether she likes to admit it or not, she needs someone to watch her back. I don't know of anyone else I'd want to have her guarded by than you. Will you do this?"

Zel's emotional armour started to show signs of damage. "Yes. You have my word."

"Good." Gourry laid back on the bed smiling contentedly. "A-are you guys gonna sleep in here tonight?"

"I think so. Amelia's not expected to wake up until late tomorrow."

"Oh. Good. I don't want to be alone right now."

'I wouldn't either if I were in your shoes,' the sorcerer thought grimly. 

The rising sun streamed rays of golden radiance through the small room's window, falling upon the bed. Sylphiel opened her eyes, roused by the brightness, and looked up, trying to gather her senses. She replayed what little her waking brain could recollect from yesterday. A battle at the temple. Gourry and Amelia injured badly enough to be brought to the healers. The man telling her, Lina and Zelgadis about Gourry. Her talk with her love. Falling asleep in his arms that night. She blinked and looked up at the swordsman's face. His strong arms still wrapped around her, as hers were linked round him. Hesitantly, she brought one hand up and brushed her fingers along his cheek, quickly recoiling. His skin felt so cold. Tears threatened to fall once more as Sylph called out his name, trying to wake him. She sat up and wept. It was no use. Gourry had died in his sleep. 

The shrine maiden's sobs did wake Zel, however. The chimera blearily rose his head from its resting place on one of the room's walls. He and Lina had fallen asleep in a couple of chairs. The sorceress continued to snore lightly, her head set on Zelgadis's shoulder as a stone pillow. He gently shifted her so the wall supported her head, then walked over to the bed and opened his arms to the weeping woman. Sylph all but launched herself into his embrace, clinging to the shaman for dear life. 

Lina finally awoke. She immediately noticed Sylphiel crying in Zel's arms, and put two and two together. The flame-haired sorceress stood from her chair and walked over to the bed, gazing down at the peaceful expression on her partner's face. She leaned down and brushed away some of his bangs, then gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead. 

"Sayonara, Gourry."

::ducks all the projectiles flying at her from Gourry fans:: GOMEN NASAI! ::bows reverently, trying to appease the readers:: Yes, I know. It was cruel! Poor Gourry-san. It hurt to write this, but I had to. It took me a week to write it. At one point, I was just going to chuck it and change the fight scene yet again, but I'm already preparing thoughts for a sequel, and Gourry was out of it, so I just decided to leave it. No clue as to when that'll start coming out. I'm working on a few other things at the moment. ::sighs:: 

Ravenrei-the cyberpsycho

Okay, I'm warning you all right now, this has got to be the worst thing I ever wrote. The ending just refused to work for me the way I wanted it to. The damn servers get sooo cranky when you try to pass big letters through. Grr. Anyway, I'm not happy with this part, and unfortunately, it's the last one. Yes, it's complete now. Ah well, at least I'm making a sequel, ne? ::notices people twitching in the audience:: Eep. Please don't kill me. I got thinking about things, okay? Um, I've got a question, actually. What *do* we know about Zelgadis, family-wise. Well, other than Rezo, obviously. I'm welcome to any info you lovely people can give me. I need it desperately for something I'm working on. Thanks! And now, on to the last part of Duty!

Part 10: Sad! A Farewell of Two Kinds

The group detoured from their route to stop at Gourry's home, an adequately-sized homestead not far from the nearby town. They informed his family of the events surrounding his death, and asked for their fallen friend's sword. 

Gourry had told Lina once about a custom his family had. Usually, the tradition goes that a swordsman is lain in his final resting place with his sword in his hands. However, in the case of the Gabriev family, the eldest son of the house possessed the Hikari no Ken, and the sword passed from son to son each generation. Burial of the legendary blade was *not* an option. Therefore, the family had set up their own custom. Each swordsman or swordswoman was buried with his or her first sword, saved in the family armoury before he or she left home. Apparently, Gourry hadn't told his family about the loss of the Hikari no Ken, because his father asked for it back. An argument ensued, ending with the retrieval of Gourry's first sword and of his sister, Leian. She joined them on their journey and represented the Gabrievs at the funeral.

The city of Seyruun was draped in colours of mourning as the funeral procession passed through the streets. Three days had gone by since Gourry's death. The group travelled to Seyruun with their comrade in a coffin made of the finest materials Amelia could find. Prince Philionel prepared a state funeral for the swordsman, the ceremony held as soon as they arrived in the white magic capital. The former Swordsman of Light was buried in the Tomb of the Heroes later that evening with his first sword in his hands, according to his family's tradition. 

After the burial, Lina, Zelgadis, and Sylphiel met in a small room in the palace. 

"So, where do we go from here?" Zel sighed. 

Lina ran a tired hand through her hair. "Well, no doubt we're gonna have Mazoku up to our ears. I guess we'll just drift around and face whatever comes after us." 

"Do you think they want all of us?" 

"Probably not, Sylph. You should be okay, and Amelia too as long as she stays inside Seyruun. I doubt she could hold her own if she left the safety the city walls provide without us. Zel and I, on the other hand, are more than likely going to have Mazoku crawling down our throats trying to kill us. We can hope that they think that since Xelloss failed, others will if they try, but that's a big wish."

"I don't think we should tell Amelia about that."

"Huh?" Lina blinked. 

"Xelloss. I'm pretty sure she already thinks he's bad enough as it is with what little we know about him. Hearing that he just tried to kill all of us isn't going to help that, and I don't trust that justice kick of hers," the shaman shook his head. "She'd probably send out a battalion of troops to hunt him down or something. Then Seyruun would be in trouble."

"Mmm…" The shrine maiden stood. "I think I'll see Leian back to her parents, then head home myself. If either of you need help, you know where to find me?" They nodded their agreement, then watched as Sylphiel Nels Raada left.

"Wanna go cure hunting, Zel?"

"…"

"Zel?"

"…"

BONK!

"ITAAIII!!!!"

"That was stupid."

"Well, at least it brought you back to reality. Did you hear my question?"

He sighed yet again. "Nothing better to do, I guess."

"Oh, wait, you asked about it at the temple, right?"

"Yeah."

"And?"

"I've got about a year before I find it."

"Ah. Is this in some remote location where it'll take from now until then to reach it?"

"Not really."

"Hmm…Guess a cure quest wouldn't make sense right now then, ne?"

"Yeah." 

Lina slumped in her chair.

"We could go raid some bandit camps." Zel suggested, shocking himself that he even brought it up. 

"Yeah, maybe. Hey, I know!" she stood and grabbed the chimera's arm, pulling him up as well. "C'mon, we're gonna go enjoy ourselves!" she announced, then ran out of the room with him dragging behind. 

'Yep, she's in denial about this,' he decided. Then a look of confusion crossed Zel's face. 'Hey, how strong is Lina that she can drag ME????'

Fin

Raven-chan: Yep, that's it. The end of Duty. ::sighs:: It's finally done!!! Wai!!! ::pulls out the party items:: Time to celebrate before starting the sequel! 

Yuu-sama: Oh gods, not a sequel. 

Raven-chan: Of course, a sequel. I've had it bouncing around in my head for *three* weeks! 

Yuu-sama: ::sighs::

::Xelloss and Zelgadis appear out of kasaspace (yes, I enjoy FY, why do you ask?):: 

Zel: Uh, how did we get here?

Xel: ::stalks over to Raven-chan with his scary, open-eyed face:: WHY did you do that?!?!?!?

Raven-chan: ::lip quivers:: Gomen, Xel-chan! But you know I like to write you either as dark, a hentai fruitcake, or a mushy romantic! (don't ask…done in fits of insanity)

Xel: But you made Lina-chan hurt me!

Zel: Well duh, you tried to kill us all, bastard!

Xel: ::blinks:: Is that wrong?

Zel: ::growls::

Raven-chan: Well, I think I'll let you nice people leave my party now, this looks to turn ugly. ::eyes double-take as Zel pulls out his sword and charges it with an Astral Vine:: Eep. Zel-chan! No swordplay in the house! Bai-bai, minna-san! Remember, questions, comments, whatever!

Ravenrei-the cyberpsycho


End file.
